Just as Christian egalitarians sometimes misunderstand objectification, sometimes they misunderstand polygamy. They might see it as an expression of misogyny, sexist social structures, and a perversion of marriage. Logically and Biblically speaking, none of these things are the case. There is nothing sexist, degrading, or evil about polygamy, or polyandry, in itself. Anyone who claims that one or the other is dehumanizing by its very nature simply does not understand what they actually are.
If a certain case of polygamy or polyandry is an expression of someone's disregard for the full humanity of the opposite gender, perhaps by thinking of the opposite gender as only useful only for marriage or sex, then the issue has to do with the way that person views other humans, not with polyamory being intrinsically dehumanizing. An unbiblical, fallacious, incomplete recognition of the personhood of other people does not make polyamorous marriages evil. Instead, it only means that someone with a false or incomplete understanding of personhood is gravely mistaken.
There are multiple reasons why someone might want to be in a polyamorous marriage that have nothing to do with viewing members of the opposite gender as only recipients of sexual or romantic feelings. Some might want, to provide just one example, the deep relational intimacy that can come with marriage to be multiplied. Others might want to have multiple sexual partners--but not at the cost of deep commitment and recognition of every other aspect of their partners' being.
It is logically invalid to pretend like polyamory, or polygamy in particular, as is usually argued, is an expression of sexism. Some egalitarians, though they have benevolent intentions, have accepted fallacies inherited from either secular or evangelical culture, and the belief that egalitarianism contradicts polygamy is one that is objectively false. If this were the case, God would have permitted, codified, and even at times encouraged a sin--a logical and theological impossibility (James 1:13)!
Polyamorous marriages are certainly not for everyone. I would love to get married, but I sure as hell do not want to have multiple wives! My desire for a monogamous marital relationship has nothing to do with polygamy being some perceived atrocity that devalues women (or with the mistaken perception that polyandry devalues men). It is rooted in a preference that reflects my personality. And that is all it amounts to as according to Christian theology.
Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband.
ReplyDelete- 1 Corin 7:2
Polygamy has been identified as being detrimental to society with having a direct correlation to violent crime. See Psychologist Professor Jordan Peterson's many lectures on men and women for greater social insight.
Some assume that because patriarchs in the Old Testament had multiple wives points to God's sanction, but on close examination you'll see that's not true. It's was Solomon's 1000 combined wives and concubines that was his downfall and ultimately led to Israel's division. And Jacob wasn't following in Abraham's or Issac's tradition but instead was tricked by Laban to marry both daughters and their subsequent rivalry led to the twelve tribes being born of 4 mothers. I can't think of a single instance anywhere in the Bible where polygamy or polyamory (adultery) worked well.
So it's not simply a matter of preference in "Christian theology" but instead of identifying God's harmonious design: Adam was not presented with multiple wives.
Here you go with your fallacies and errors again! Polyamory cannot MAKE anyone commit a crime. This is like saying that playing violent video games makes someone act in a violent manner, when this is entirely untrue. Jordan Peterson does not make something true; reason and reality do.
DeleteDeuteronomy 17:17 addresses how monarchs should not have a multitude of spouses, but the command only applies to rulers. I have never argued that something is right or wrong just because humans act a certain way in the Old Testament, as that does not logically follow. It is the fact that God codified polygamy (and by logical equivalence polyandry) in Mosaic Law that means polyamorous marriages are not sinful because a morally perfect deity cannot provide sinful legislation (James 1:13). Besides, on the Christian worldview, something is not sinful if it is not condemned by Scripture or if it does not follow with perfect logicality from a Biblical command that it is wrong (Deuteronomy 4:2, Romans 7:7). Even if Christianity turned out to not be true, conscience and consensus still have nothing to do with something being wrong and (since morality can only exist if it is grounded in the nature of a deity) moral truths would still have to be revealed by God.
Polyamory does not necessarily mean adultery, as polyamorous marriages can exist. And, sorry, it doesn’t follow from Adam and Eve having one spouse in Eden that therefore polygamy and polyandry are inherently immoral.
OK first, you obviously haven't heard Jordan Peterson's logical and statistically irrefutable historical and present case studies for the consistent pattern of cause and correlation of polygamy and violent crime. I refer you to him as a resource, a fount of understanding from an interpersonal and social psychology perspective. For me to comprehensively lay out his professional observations here is beyond the scope of this comment box as it's better suited to one of his hour plus lectures. Again, if you wanna know more than you think you do, look into it.
ReplyDeleteAs for sin, your stated Christian worldview is at odds (here and notably elsewhere) with what the Bible actually says, which give me the distinct impression that you're lacking in both knowledge and understanding...and wisdom for that matter. And so you should be, for blessed are the poor in spirit.
So consider this:
But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. - Romans 14:23
And:
But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Matthew 5:28
Prove someone’s set of alleged statistics are true. You can’t. And polyamory can’t make anyone sin or act in a certain way. Correlation isn’t causation, so even if a correlation does exist, it doesn’t prove what you are claiming. And how do you know I haven’t listened to one of Peterson’s lectures? You make many assumptions, it seems.
DeleteShow me where I have made these claimed Scriptural errors about sin. What do you even mean by wisdom other than “something that I subjectively like?” And what does Matthew 5:28 have to do with anything I previously said?